Can I Put A Knocked Out Tooth Back In?

Attempting to save a natural tooth when it has been knocked out.

Thousands of teeth are knocked out each year, both in children and adults.

This can happen in a number of ways, perhaps a fall, a play fight amongst children or a sporting accident, as some of you may have seen happen during a live football match on TV this weekend.

You may have heard some people say that the tooth can be put back in straight away and it will be saved. The truth is that whilst this is possible, it is a lot more complicated than that.

As this may be a topical subject following the football game we referenced, we thought we would explain what to do, should this happen to you.

If your tooth is knocked out, you should:

Immediately retrieve the tooth from the ground, or wherever it has landed. Make sure that you pick it up by the crown part of the tooth. That is the part that would be visible above the gum line if it were in your mouth. Do not touch the root part of the tooth.

Rinse any dust or dirt from the tooth. Do not try to brush, scrub or wipe it, simply rinse it briefly. Don’t wrap the tooth in a tissue or any type of cloth.

If possible, and it is not too painful, try to put the tooth back into the socket. Carefully insert it and press gently with your finger or by gently ‘biting’ it into position.

If, for any reason, you can’t insert the tooth back into the socket, you must keep it moist. The best place, if you are comfortable doing so, is in the cheek of your mouth. Take care not to swallow it though if you do. Alternatively, place the tooth in some milk. Don’t use water as, perhaps surprisingly, the living cells remaining on the tooth will not tolerate it. If water is the only option, use bottled water that is chemical and chlorine free, but preferably use milk instead.

Ring The Dental Centre Bedford straight away explaining what has happened. We will attempt to see you straight away as the sooner the tooth is correctly back in place, the greater the chances of success.

It should be said that there are no guarantees that this will work, and it may be necessary to look at alternatives such as titanium dental implants as a replacement. If the reinsertion of the natural tooth does work, it will do so by a similar process to the placing of implants. The bone will gradually start to bond with the root end of the tooth, holding it in place.

Even if this is successful, the damage that is likely to have been caused to the nerves within the root canals may need to be treated. Where this is the case, a root canal procedure will be necessary to preserve the tooth.

If you do knock a tooth out cleanly (i.e. it hasn’t broken), it is certainly worth attempting the above as a first option. Do make sure to contact your local Bedford dentist straight away though. Even if the reinsertion does not prove to be successful, we are able to offer unbiased information on the alternative tooth replacements methods available.

You can call The Dental Centre Bedford for an emergency appointment on 01234 819868.